Before embarking on a East Coast tour behind a new LP, Miami band Teepee will play at Churchill’s Saturday night. — photo by Jaime Salazar

After six years performing solo as Teepee, Erix S. Laurent is trying something new. The 25-year-old Miami native, formerly known as Eric Lopez-Zareno, is bolstering the one-man act with a band.

“Eric is still very much a solo musician,” said bandmate Andrew McLees. “So he can pull off doing something on his own with an acoustic guitar and a synthesizer, being in a live band and then you have the recordings as reference. It’s a testament to how versatile his songs can be.”

The band’s second ever show is this Saturday. Laurent — accompanied by McLees on guitar, Gabi Dimaro on keyboard, and Arturo Garcia on drums — will be joining Miami’s Deaf Poets, Axe and the Oak, Lil Daggers, Toad Eyes, and Jellyfish Brothers at Churchill’s for a night of big sounds and free booze (until it runs out).

But this show is just a warm up for what’s to come. In September Teepee will hit the road on an East Coast tour in support of a new LP, Distant Love or: Time Never Meant Anything, And Never Will (stream tracks below), the follow-up to 2009’s Morals. According to Laurent, the new album channels Brian Eno, ’80s and ’90s Brit, as well as some shoegaze and dream pop. I spoke to Laurent about writing his first songs at five years old, learning how to play jazz, and starting a relationship with three other people.

How did you start playing music?

EL: I started playing piano first when I was like five. My mom had a keyboard lying around the house, so I would always play with it. Sometimes when I would be really depressed or pissed at my mom, I’d play it and write a song about her. Not a bad song, but a song just being like, “I really want this toy” or whatever. So I started experimenting with that, it had really cool sounds. I think it was some sort of Roland that had frog sounds and car sounds.

What kind of music did you listen to growing up?

EL: I was exposed to a lot of ’80s music. My first favorite [artist] was Michael Jackson. And I started getting into Nirvana and Metallica and a little bit of Marilyn Manson — that was a weird stage. And my brother was like, “Wait, what are you doing with these CDs?” So he got pissed at me because I was a rocker. He wanted me to be a rapper or a hip hopper. So, yeah, that happened.

Is anyone else in your family a musician?

EL: My uncle. Actually my uncle taught me a few chords. And I actually always wanted to play like my uncle, because he only knew like five chords but the way he played it was really amazing, there was a lot of emotion to it.

What kind of stuff did your uncle play?

EL: Like Bob Sieger, the Eagles, Bread, that sort of stuff. “Stairway to Heaven”. A lot of that. And, yeah, I started playing guitar, and I think the first band that I started really getting into or starting to learn was typical Nirvana.

Where did you study music?

Eric: I studied music at Miami Dade [College], Wolfson campus. I started studying jazz.

How did your musical education affect your style of music?

EL: When I first started college I definitely wanted to be in the music program to get better at playing guitar because I only knew a few chords, and I was like, I really want to learn how to solo. So I asked a kid in the music hall and he was like, yeah, just study jazz because you’re going to learn all the chords and melodies and stuff, and I stuck with it for four years at [MDC]. I was supposed to graduate after two years, but I didn’t wanna stop. So jazz definitely helped my chops. I pretty much had to start over again. I had to learn theory and all the scales and chords and stuff. It was a good workout for me, and it definitely expanded my brain. Because I also ventured into a lot of weird forms of jazz.

Who’s your favorite jazz musician?

EL: I’d definitely say John Coltrane. He definitely had an impact on my musical influence and style.

What was the first guitar you started playing on?

EL: It was a Fender Strat, Mexican. Well, whoops, it was an acoustic guitar that my mom got in Spain.

How did you get the Strat?

EL: My dad made a bet with me. He said that if I could play a full song by myself, that he would buy me a guitar. And I guess he didn’t really believe that I could do that, so I ended up in one day learning David Bowie, “The Man Who Sold the World”. Learned the whole thing in a few hours.

So was it David Bowie who made you want to play that song? Or was it Nirvana?

EL: It was Nirvana, but I had the David Bowie version.

Which one do you think is better?

EL: Nirvana. Kurt took it down to the more depressing level. I was more in tune with Kurt, I think.

Does being in Miami influence your music at all?

EL: Ummm, no. Kind of. There are good bands, but I don’t like drawing influence from them. A lot of the influence I get is from London and what’s out there and whatever was happening in the ’90s.

How has the music scene in Miami changed since you started playing?

EL: Before, when I was playing a lot in Miami, I noticed that there were a lot of disco rock bands happening, at least in the scene that I was part of. And now there’s not that much of that. Now I don’t even know what’s going on.

How long have you been performing as Teepee?

EL: Since 2008, for about four years.

And you just got the band together?

EL: I feel like I’m starting over again. I’m pretty much starting over.

In what way?

EL: I mean, having the band now is just a whole new thing compared to when I was by myself. Now I’m in a relationship with three other people. I have to share my ideas with people. It’s all different. I like it though. It’s growth. I graduated from all that other stuff, and now I’m onto something new.